Hd Home Hd Led Miniature Mini 1080p Projector (for Mac/tv
Search Wirecutter For: Search Reviews for the real world Browse Close. Browse Close. Chris Heinonen has reviewed projectors and home theater equipment since 2008.
He is an ISF Level II Certified Calibrator, so he is aware of what makes for a good image and how to get that out of a projector. He has a full complement of objective testing gear to measure and evaluate the performance of these projectors, as well as the knowledge to get the best performance from them. For a layperson’s perspective, staff writer Sabrina Imbler tested each projector to compare usability and overall performance with Chris’s technical notes. Who should get this. If you love impromptu movie nights, a portable pico projector makes it easy to display content on a wall anywhere.
They are small enough to easily carry from room to room and can show a 50-inch-plus image on a wall. They likely aren’t bright enough for an outdoor movie night, but if you keep the image small, and your yard is dark, it might work. In a pinch, the brightest portable projectors can also show a PowerPoint or other presentation in a room with the lights on. These probably aren’t the projectors you want for a dedicated home theater room though. For that, look to our guide to the best. If you already have a mini projector, but it isn’t bright enough, isn’t battery-powered, or is too heavy to carry around, upgrading to one of our picks makes sense. You won’t be able to use a mini projector as a TV replacement if you tend to watch TV with much light on, but in the dark they look fine, and are great space savers.
If you need a projector that’s portable, but you don’t need it to be incredibly tiny or run off a battery, check out our. The projectors use standard metal halide lamps, rather than the little LED lamps of of pico projectors, will be five to 10 times as bright as a pico projector and can easily create images 100 to 120 inches in size. They also have more inputs and more video adjustments. If you want a projector to watch movies on the wall and still want to be able to occasionally take it with you, one of these might be what you’re after.
A $500 projector is small enough to stick in a closet to store it while you’re not using it, but not small enough to just toss in a backpack and carry around with you, which you can do with a portable projector. How we picked and tested. Our tested models (clockwise from left): The Anker Nebula Mars, Anker Capsule, AAXA P300, Asus S1, AAXA P300 Neo Pico, and DBPower. Photo: Michael Hession We started by considering 38 different models, and then narrowed our list to six finalists based on specifications, user reviews, and features. A good portable projector needs to be easy to pack and carry.
Hd Home Hd Led Miniature Mini 1080p Projector (for Mac/tv)
It should have a high enough contrast ratio that dark areas of the picture remain suitably dark while bright areas remain bright. It should also offer all the necessary inputs, such as HDMI. Ideally, it should also provide battery power so you can use it with a laptop or smartphone and nothing else if there are no outlets around. To evaluate each projector’s specifications objectively, Chris Heinonen used software with a test pattern generator and an spectrophotometer and colorimeter. To evaluate the projectors subjectively, we watched a variety of video content, including a dark, forested scene from the last Harry Potter movie, a football game, and the 2015 period drama Carol. We tested with lights on and lights off, as a pico projector is more likely to be used with the lights on than a traditional projector.
We compared projectors side by side using an HDMI splitter. This made it easy to notice differences in brightness, color, image size, and overall quality. When possible we made the image size the same; however, with variable throw distances—and no zoom to make up for this fact—it was often not possible due to space issues. To narrow the field further, we tested our final five projectors to see how well they performed in each of the following features:. Resolution should be 720p or better, as image quality and resolution are integral to a good movie-viewing experience.
Contrast ratio refers to the difference between the brightest part of an image and the darkest. The higher the contrast ratio, the more the image pops.
A good projector with good brightness will be able to output at least 500 lumens, but don’t go by the company’s specs alone because most manufacturers inflate their specs for marketing purposes, or don’t measure them in a universally approved method. Accurate color will ensure that whatever you’re watching looks realistic. Some projectors will produce images that are overly saturated or way too cool, which can distract from the actual content.
A full-size HDMI input is as universal a connection as we have today and is supported by almost all consumer electronics devices. Some mini projectors accept only a Mini HDMI input, which requires you to carry around a special HDMI-to-Mini HDMI cable or adapter at all times as well. Because there are plenty of projectors available with full-size HDMI ports, even in very tiny packages, this is a compromise you shouldn’t have to make. Battery option for a portable projector is a must-have, especially for people who want to take their projector into areas without access to electricity. The battery should last at least two hours, which is enough play a typical movie. It’s also worth noting that projectors are often not as bright when running on battery as when connected to a power outlet, so we tested performance both on battery and on AC.
Built-in speakers are a must for a portable projector, and they should be powerful enough to carry sound across a living room filled with people. A compact size and light weight are necessary for any portable projector. It should fit in a small backpack. Automatic keystone correction, which can self-correct to a rectangular image when not placed perpendicular to the horizontal centerline of the screen, will make it much easier to move the projector around or place it at an angle. A reasonable throw distance, which refers to how far the projector must be from the wall to display a large, full image, will make a large image even when cramped in a small room. It’s usually easier to place a projector closer to the wall than farther to get an image of the correct size.
Our pick: AAXA P300. The Pico Projector remains our top pick for the best mini projector. It produces a very bright image from a short throw distance, with the best contrast ratio of any projector we tested. It has an internal battery that lasts up to an hour and built-in speakers that work fine for presentations, though we recommend external speakers for movie night. The AAXA also weighs a little less than a pound, making it an ultra-portable option. The AAXA P300 offers a resolution of 1280×800 and was the second brightest projector we tested (the was brighter, but it was discontinued before this guide was published.) The manufacturer claims 400 lumens, but in our testing we measured 240 lumens (it’s common for the claim and the measured result to be different). This is still bright enough that we could project a 50-inch image with the lights on or off and have no trouble seeing it.
Many other mini projectors measured 150 lumens or less, which didn’t work well at all in a room with lights. The P300 has the best contrast ratio of any projector we tested, with the 920:1 we measured approaching what a DLP home theater projector can do. The grayscale has a blue tint and was less accurate than any model we tested other than the DBPower unit. It isn’t that far off the target though, and most people likely won’t be bothered by it. The AAXA also has one of the shortest throw distances of the projectors we tested.
When each projector was placed an identical 5 feet from the wall, some of their images measured as small as 40 inches diagonal and were unusably dim. The AAXA’s image from that distance measured 58 inches—almost 2½ times the area of some of the other projectors without loss of sharpness—and was still reasonably bright.
You can get an image big enough for viewing from as close as 4 feet. This, along with the AAXA’s brightness, makes it easier to get the image size you want. An internal battery for the AAXA P300 offers up to 60 minutes of playback.
This isn’t enough to watch a full movie, but it will get you through a presentation, vacation slideshow, or some videos from YouTube. If you want to watch a whole movie, you’ll need to plug in the power cord. The AAXA’s battery is removable, so you can get a spare if you want, but I’d probably just pack an AC adapter instead of an extra battery in most situations. You can navigate the AAXA P300’s menu through buttons on the projector or with a separate remote.
Photo: Michael Hession The AAXA has a standard HDMI input (it will work with ), which makes it easy to play all of your content from almost any source on it. It also has composite and VGA connectors (though you’ll have to use the included adapters), and it can play certain files from a. It’s picky about the movie formats it supports on USB and microSD—M4V files couldn’t play—but standard JPGs work fine.
For video it supports the AVI format, but because there are many variations of AVI files you can’t be certain an AVI file will work without testing. The AAXA also includes a remote. The AAXA P300 has integrated dual 1-watt speakers. Although they aren’t powerful enough for a movie night, they can project well enough for a presentation in a conference room, though the sound quality isn’t spectacular. It also has an audio-out port if you want to connect better speakers or headphones instead of using the internal speaker. But the projector’s operational noise was quieter than that of the AAXA P300 Neo Pico. Though the AAXA is bright, it’s oversaturated and has a reddish tint to it, making some skin tones look sunburnt no matter how you try to fix them in the menu system.
You also can’t really make good adjustments because when the menu system is up, test patterns won’t display on the screen. You basically get to choose between only the preset modes it comes with; making adjustments beyond that is hard because you can’t monitor your changes as you make them.
Animated films had punchy colors, but real people looked unnatural. This makes the AAXA less well-suited to presenting accurate images in a vacation slideshow or watching a movie, but fine for home office use. The AAXA P300 has no rubber feet, which makes it prone to sliding around on the table due to the weight and pull of cables. This can be remedied for $1 at any hardware store, and is the first thing we’d do after buying the projector. What to look forward to. Anker announced a new version of its soda-can-shaped mini projector, the.
The latest version promises USB-C charging, a more powerful speaker, and the inclusion of Google Assistant. Anker also claims that the Capsule II will feature a higher, 720p resolution, which is an improvement over the previous model’s 480p. It should also have a brighter image at 200 lumens. We plan to test the new model when it’s released. We loved the and wanted to make it our top pick, but Anker discontinued it while this guide was in production. The company launched an updated version in May 2018, the, which also runs on Android OS and allows you to stream content directly from apps such as Hulu and Netflix.
We plan to test it soon. Also in May 2018, AAXA released its, which has most of the same features as our but with better battery and LED life, and a slightly higher lumens output. We’ll look into that model soon as well. The competition. The was by far the best projector we tested, but we can’t recommend it because it is no longer being made.
The Nebula Mars has the brightest picture and easiest interface, as well as an array of extra features that make on-the-go video streaming easier, such as Android apps, Wi-Fi capability, three-and-a-half hours of battery life, and booming speakers. It’s also sturdy and sleek, with a stitched leather handle that makes it easy to carry.
Another one of our prior picks, the, is half the size of the AAXA P300 and comes with a carrying case and has a built-in battery that delivers up to three hours of use. It produces a similarly large image to AAXA P300’s from the same distance. But it delivers just 90 lumens at 480p, which is far too dim and small for a movie screening at home. The image is also noticeably washed out. It is the absolute smallest portable projector we tested, so if you need an ultralight, compact projector in a pinch, you might check it out. Due to reader request, we tested the, a frequent Amazon best-seller in video projectors and accessories. At its current price of just $100, it claims a whopping 1,800 lumens and 1080p resolution.
It manages to produce all those lumens by adding an excessive blue tint to the image, which makes it appear brighter, but produces a horrible image. Chris called it, “By far the worst display device I’ve ever tested, with a grayscale that is excessively blue and colors that are not accurate at all, with very low HDTV gamut coverage.” It’s also just large and heavy but with no internal battery and none of the perks. We don’t recommend anyone buy it. The looked like a newer, smaller, cheaper version of the AAXA P300.
But the image wasn’t as bright or clear as that of the original P300, sporting a contrast ratio under half that of the AAXA P300, and we couldn’t get the keystone correction to work. Around the size of a soda can, the is a scaled-down version of the Anker Nebula Mars. It runs on the same Android software, which means it’s just as easy to use, and claims its battery lasts up to four hours. But its 854×480 resolution is just too low for streaming movies. It also looks half as bright as the AAXA P300, even though it currently costs around $50 more.
The produces a tiny 854×480 picture at 150 lumens. Measuring 4.3 by 3.27 by 1.14 inches and weighing 11 ounces, it’s smaller than even the Asus S1 (and with a 6,000 mAh battery, it lasts for five hours—two hours longer than the S1).
At just 150 lumens, it’s just not bright enough. The features a hotspot and built-in touchscreen that runs Android 4.4. This lets you stream content directly from the projector without any external source. Anything with an app can be used: Netflix, Hulu, Google Drive, and so on. There’s also a version that has LTE and uses a SIM card (an or data plan is required), so you can use it on the road without a Wi-Fi connection, and it’ll act as a hotspot for your other mobile devices too.
At home it will connect to your Wi-Fi network like any other Android device does. I carried it around the house streaming content on the wall while running from the battery and it works great. Compared with the AAXA the ZTE isn’t quite as bright, and whites have a green tint to them. It is much more expensive than the AAXA, and most people already have a portable source—their phone or tablet—that they can use with a pico projector, so the optional hotspot feels unnecessary. But if you have AT&T or Verizon, need a hotspot, and also want a portable projector, you might want to check it out. The has dual HDMI inputs and supports 3D, but exhibits video processing bugs that reduce the image quality.
It has to be closer to the wall than the AAXA for the same size image. There are posterization artifacts with moving objects, especially on faces, which makes it a worse choice for movies. One cool feature is internal Wi-Fi lets multiple people connect and project content for presentations, but this doesn’t make up for its other issues.
The is compact and portable with a rated 500 lumens, but has no battery option. With enough models available that offer battery power, it didn’t make the cut. The is small and portable, but isn’t isn’t bright enough for most situations, and user reviews are generally negative. The is very small and cheap, but with 25 lumens you aren’t going to get a large image or one that you can see in anything but a pitch-black room.
A projector can give you the feeling of a home theatre in your living room and might be just what you need to get that cinema experience at home, without the need for a giant screen. With a projector you don't have to spend as much as you would normally splash on a high quality LCD or to get a large, bright picture. There are plenty of HD projectors and a handful of more expensive 4K models available, while other lighter business projectors can be set up in different places and are easily portable. The best projectors under £500 1. ViewSonic PJD7720HD. This smart business projector is ideal for use on the move for showing slides or videos, or just a useful tool for someone on a budget.
What makes this mini projector different is its clever, flexible set up using a tripod, that can be easily adjusted or latched on to supports. It doesn't offer a huge amount of brightness at just 50 lumens, but that is typical for palm-sized portable projectors. It has 854x480 resolution and connects via Micro HDMI, which will work with Android devices, however you will need an additional adapter to connect to Apple devices. It includes HDMI cables and the tripod in the price. Another HD projector that creeps in under £500 is this 1080p model from Optoma; it comes with two HDMI ports and built-in speakers and also features a gaming mode to optimise your projector for feature response times and vivid colours.
As a DLP projector it can show 3D films. The Optoma is a standard throw projector, meaning you will want to stand it around 1.5m away from your screen or wall. It won't quite deliver the colours of some more expensive models, but it offers a great picture for a reasonable price. Epson EH-TW650. LG's stylish Minibeam projector is a great short range projector with plenty of features to make this a great all-round device. From just 38cm away it can launch a 100-inch picture across a wall or screen, has wireless capacity for connecting PC or tablet, while it connects with Bluetooth to external speakers. It has 1080p and 1,000 lumen brightness, meaning it is probably better suited to environments without too much background light.
It has an independent battery life of around two and a half hours, while it is compatible via USB and can connect to Apple products. This high-end projector from Epson is perfect for those looking to invest in a premium home cinema experience. Project a full HD image up to 300 inches or achieve 100 inches from just three metres away. With a high contrast ratio of 70,000:1, powerful brightness and up to seven years of life on the lamp, you can guarantee an incredible picture for years to come. It comes equipped for wireless viewing so you can stream from a laptop or smartphone.
You also have two HDMI ports and a USB port and jacks for additional audio input. Epson is known for its high quality projectors, and this projector can help bring magic of cinema, including 3D, into your home. What to look for in a projector Digital or LCD Most standard projectors come with an LCD light, similar to the one used in most television sets. These can achieve greater colour saturation and brightness in your picture. Brightness Getting a bright picture- measured in lumens - out of your projector can really liven up the experience of watching a film.
Anything from 1,000 to 1,200 lumens of brightness can be enough for getting a good picture in a dark room, but more than 3,000 may make the image overbright. If you plan to use the projector in a location with light or daylight, a brightness of 2,000 lumens or higher will help provide a clear picture in all conditions. Small pico projectors, used for portable projections, will often have much lower rated brightness. Type of projector There are several of different kinds of projector. The main choice you will want to make is whether it is a short throw projector, which can be positioned around 0.5m from the screen, or a long throw projector, which project from greater distances and can be used in a home cinema set up. Other options are smaller pico projectors, these are portable and can operate with a battery rather than a wired connection.
Price You can get a decent projector for between £250 and £500 if you are on the budget, normally smaller portable projectors that are fine for every day use in a dark room. Projectors for more than £500 will be higher quality, with Full HD capacity and greater brightness. Projectors for more than £1,000 are likely to be HD systems and built with a home cinema experience in mind.